Check your power steering belt. The manual...or lack of a manual bolt way to belt tension on the power steering belt makes it easy for it to not be tension properly.

Grab your favorite pry bar.

http://www.toyotanation.com/forum/1...ry-solara-lounge/393017-98-toyota-camry-v6-how-tighten-power-steering-belt.html

http://www.toyotanation.com/forum/1...rolla-7th-generation-1993-1997/322364-how-do-i-tighten-power-steering-belt.html

 

Right you are Kingdom but he doesn't want to get happy with that pry bar and overtension the PS belt. Thumb pressure should be able to depress the belt at mid span about 3/4." Regards:smile:

 

Is this a 4cyl or a 6cyl?

 

6 cyl

 

Man, I need to try Tim Hortons. We have a fake one at the SAP Center downtown (because hockey), and it sources its products from an independent donut shop a couple blocks away.

Yeah, what Kingdom said, tension is the primary suspect. At least on the 6cyl you have less of a chance of destroying the lower timing cover when tensioning compared to the old 4cyl.

Rubber contracts when warm, so see if it happens when you do a cold start/goes away when car is warmed up.

 

Good advice above. Usually if belt is slipping you'll get a squak at hard pressure on lock(all the way left or right). If all is good on belt check for seizing strut mounts, lift both fronts, move through range, should be smooth with no binding. To diagnose a pump you'll have to hook up a high pressure gauge which is rarely done. If no shrapnel was found in pump I'd call a rack. 99% of the time it's the rack.

Best

 

yep donald. i usually allow 1/2" up or down when pulling pretty hard on a belt. that seems about right to me.
i know there's a tool for that but it looks like a real pain to get it on the p/s belt as it has to be level on the belt, centered on the belt, even pressure applied to the tool to compress the belt until it clicks, or something like that.
it sounds like a great idea, but not sure how practical they are.
tony

 

Checking the belt tension is a good start. But to me it sounds more like something sticking in the rack itself. Rotary or piston maybe. Just my thoughts.

 

I went to my local Toyota dealer today to get some feedback and one of the older service advisors told me that sticking/stiff steering issues in older Camrys are fixed by replacing the intermediate steering shaft. The part itself is just over $500 with another $300 in labour (all prices Canadian) to install.
No leaks of any kind detected in or around engine bay or under the car itself. Also no squawks or other noises from the PS system. When I did the PS flush there was no binding coming from the suspension as turned the car from lock to lock. Will test this again to be sure.
The only issue of concern to me was that the advisor said that parts of the steering shaft have no element protection and thats the cause of the sticking. One might think that this is the u joint coming out from the firewall but I coated that sucker with Teflon lube but to no avail. Could there be a sticking point further down the shaft?
Thx all for contributions. I will be updating this thread with final total costs and repair results to be of help to someone else in the future.
Might toss in a Youtube video for reference too

 

are you able to spray white lithium down the inside of the tube?
tony

 

The inter mid shaft issue usually causes 'clunks' with the steering wheel and not binding.

I was able to fix my 'clunking' with the grease kit. Now...I gott do the sway bar links and struts...

 

The intermediate shaft will not always clunk.... the shaft has two functions, to allow the shaft to slide in and out and it has a U joint to allow it to turn. When the shaft doesn't slide well, and this is a known issue, it clunks. A good cleaning and greasing will typically fix this. The sliding is so that it forgives any body flex and also keeps you from getting harpooned by the column is case of an accident. When you get stiff spots, it's the needle bearings in the U joint binding up.

I had this happen to my '06 Tacoma and this is nothing to ignore, you are literally close to locking up and smashing into something. There are reported cases to the NTSB about these unprotected u joints locking up and failing. I don't know why Toyota doesn't protect these from the elements like the US manufacturers do.

If it is in fact the u joint failing, don't waste your time spraying it with PB Blaster and caliling it fixed. Yes do it to confirm that this is the issue, then get it fixed right away. One you are to the point where the needle bearings are locking up, the damage is already done, grease or penetrant is not the answer.

These can be changed as a DIY project, just be sure to line everything rotationally the same way the old one came off so that everything is still in sync or in phase.

 

Crooked dealer wants to replace a shaft that simply needs greasing. Honest bunch over there, eh?

There is a TSB and grease kits for the shaft. Either DIY or buy the grease kit and have any mechanic follow the TSB.

Castrol synthetic ATF is their low viscosity DexronVI/MerconLV product. I would try a normal Visc ATF like Valvoline Import, Mobil1, Petrocan Duradrive....

Based on time/mileage, might be a good idea to do a complete timing belt job/ serpentine belt/tensioner/idlerpulley/water pump/seals....

 

Speaking of which...

My dad's 2000 had a lumpy steering wheel when turning left and right. It would be easy hard easy hard. I PB the joint that goes above the steering rack (might be the same one hotrod is talking about). It's been ok for the last 7 years. My friends 1995 did the same...same thing. Not sure what done it, but sprayed it that spot and it went away the issue.

 

Decided today to give spraying the U joint a try with some white lithium grease.... and it worked GREAT! Steering enters itself without any assistance and no stiffness or resistance anywhere throughout the range of steering motion
Problem fixed?

 

A quick follow up here to my original post: Its been a almost a year since I sprayed the intermittent u joint with grease. The stiff steering issue has not returned since

 

The U joint that you sprayed was that inside the car or underneath the car?

 

inside

 

Hi LR
I'm having similar issues on my 1998 Camry V6. Wondering what happened in your case in the intervening years?

 

Hi LR
I'm having similar issues on my 1998 Camry V6. Wondering what happened in your case in the intervening years?